What heals you is next to you
Since the renaissance period, the human beings have evolved continuously to look at things that add meaning to their lives. Arts, poetry and music has constantly inspired people and given them an extra incentive of living a fulfilling life. In Indian Subcontinent, before the advent of Vinyl Records, people used to go to kothas or recreation centres where women used to sing. Now, with access of diverse artistic pursuits, we can find our meaning and eventually, our self-healing through music, book reading, arts, mantra chanting, writing or reciting a poem and much more. Something that addresses our senses in a positive way would certainly have intense placebo effect and would be able to heal us in certain way. This is not a healing that would resolve major illnesses, but in case of minor afflictions, it certainly would help.
There are poetry pharmacies in many places, including the United Kingdom which offer “poetry prescriptions” to heal you. These are few lines of poems which are given to you, which you can read along with your tea or coffee. Similarly, music is known to be a great healer. There has been a recent research on pop artist Taylor Swift’s songs that if you are her fan, you might get healed, if you listen to her songs and pay attention to the content of her lyrics. For me personally, legendary singer Billy Joel is my healer, especially his song, “This is the time”. Few lines are shared here;
This is the time to remember
’Cause it will not last forever
These are the days to hold on to
’Cause we won’t, although we’ll want to
This is the time
But time is gonna change
You’ve given me the best of you
And now I need the rest of you
Did you know that before you came into my life
Some kind of miracle that I survived?
Some day we will both look back and have to laugh
We lived through a lifetime and the aftermath
The above song can be heard here
Other things that heal you could include any dormant hobby which you can pick up again, say for example sketching or painting, reading light and funny books (like P G Wodehouse) or any newly acquired activity which could include spending some time in nature or finding ways to meet new and interesting people.
If you are suffering from stray small ailments like common cold, mild fever or reassessing your priorities after a major illness is treated, going back to what you love in your life is very important. Or finding something new to look forward to can equally be helpful. Some people pick up new age healing tools, like Mindfulness, Listening to OSHO, attending pranic healing or reiki workshops and so on. All of this can help if you find the balance within you and not take yourself very seriously. One of the things I do is to write gratitude journal in the evenings which make my heart content and happy.
If you are in a transitionary phase of a career change or are confused about your work priorities, taking help of what is next to us would certainly heal and eventually clarify all the banal clutter of the mind.
Remember, what you love heals you and it is closer than you think (including people) :)
Sandeep is a Hyderabad, India based Life Purpose coach that works with individuals and groups in crafting their journeys of hope, optimism and living with purpose. He can be connected at his email
